Explorers daughter

• The adverbs 'slowly, methodically' used to describe the narwhal moving create a sense of anticipation
• This Contrast with the writer 'Scrambling back' highlights her excitement
• The writer's 'sharp intake of breath' indicates her sense of anticipation as to what may happen
• Visual imagery with references to light in 'glittering kingdom' and 'The evening light was turning butter-gold' show the writer's awe and overwhelming beauty of the landscape
• There is a dreamlike quality to the description reinforced by the metaphor of the 'kingdom'
• The adjective 'essential' explains how the narwhal is necessary for 'the survival of the hunters', highlighting the importance of the hunt to the community
• Further reinforced with adjectives 'crucial', 'staple', and 'much-needed', leading the reader to consider the consequences of a failed hunt
• The use of triplet of infinitive verbs urging the narwhal 'to dive, to leave, to survive' engages the reader in the writer's conflicted feelings about the hunt
• The use of longer, multi-clause sentences in the penultimate paragraph conveys the mounting tension of the scene
• The final paragraph returns to a calmer tone
• The impersonal statement 'one cannot afford to be sentimental in the Arctic' contrasts with the immediacy and pace of the previous paragraph